Campaigns – UNISON Nationalhttps://www.unison.org.uk
the public service unionTue, 14 Aug 2018 16:26:33 +0000en-UShourly1https://wordpress.org/?v=4.9.5Proud of who we arehttps://www.unison.org.uk/our-campaigns/celebrating-25-years-unison/
Thu, 28 Jun 2018 10:54:51 +0000https://www.unison.org.uk/?post_type=unison_campaign&p=199888UNISON came into being 25 years ago. In the face of hostile trade union legislation, and attempts to decimate and privatise our public services, we have grown and become strong. Of our 1.3 million members around 80% are women making us the biggest organisation representing women in the UK. That alone is cause for celebration. […]

]]>UNISON came into being 25 years ago. In the face of hostile trade union legislation, and attempts to decimate and privatise our public services, we have grown and become strong.

Of our 1.3 million members around 80% are women making us the biggest organisation representing women in the UK. That alone is cause for celebration. But there’s so much more to celebrate and, as a young forward-looking union that is proud of its past, we will be celebrating for the whole year – from July 2018 to June 2019.

]]>Public Service Champions: Moments of Truthhttps://www.unison.org.uk/our-campaigns/public-service-champions/
Sat, 28 Apr 2018 12:18:08 +0000https://www.unison.org.uk/?post_type=unison_campaign&p=160807The personal, frank stories behind 10 years of austerity. Public services have reached breaking point and so have the people that deliver them. They are speaking out to expose the truth.

]]>Moments of Truth reveals the personal, frank stories behind 10 years of austerity. Public services have reached breaking point and so have the people that deliver them. They are speaking out to expose the truth.

After nearly 10 years of government cuts, public service workers know how hard it can be to provide good quality, effective services. They see the impact austerity has on the communities they keep safe, educated, healthy and cared for – up close. Their stories also reveal the personal toll working for underfunded services has had on their lives.

Moments of Truth puts real people at the heart of the austerity debate – testimony from NHS workers, Teaching Assistants, Librarians, police staff and local government workers. These are experts you can trust, speaking out to make sure the public hear the truth.

Moments of Truth is part of UNISON’s Public Service Champions campaign, which aims to win public support for proper investment in public services and pressure decision makers to reverse austerity. Among the measures needed to secure the future of our public services, UNISON is calling on the government to:

reverse the £2.4bn cut in the Settlement Funding Assessment for local authorities in England and provide funding to meet the 2019/20 budget pressures that local councils will face;

close the £2.5bn shortfall in social care funding;

proper funding for all public services, including the NHS and education;

halt privatisation and outsourcing of public services and begin the process of bringing services back in-house;

ensure appropriate levels of staffing across all parts of the public services – including in local government, schools and policing.

How you can help

Share the #MomentsOfTruth films on Facebook and Twitter to spread the word.

Come to the ‘Step up for Public Services’ demo on 12 May in London. It is going to be a key moment in the fight for public services. Find out more

]]>Pay Up Now for Council and School Workershttps://www.unison.org.uk/our-campaigns/fair-pay-now-council-school-workers/
Mon, 17 Jul 2017 09:56:57 +0000https://www.unison.org.uk/?post_type=unison_campaign&p=187026Council and school workers' pay has been frozen for years. UNISON is demanding better, fairer pay for all.

]]>UNISON has accepted the Local Government Association’s two-year pay offer, covering the period April 2018 – March 2020. GMB has also accepted and while Unite rejected the offer, it has accepted the majority position of UNISON and the GMB.

Key features of the pay offer are:

A 16% pay increase for those currently on the lowest NJC scale point (scp) 6 over two years, giving a bottom rate of £9 an hour from 1 April 2019

A pay increase of between 15% and 4.3% for those on current NJC scp’s 7 – 28

04% over two years for those above current NJC scp 29 – including those above NJC scp 49

A new pay spine from 2019, with new scale points 1-43 and even 2% pay gaps between scp’s 6-28

Note – NJC employees in London have their own pay spine and received a different offer, which was also accepted.

What does this mean for me?

The NJC Joint Secretaries have informed your employer that the award should now be implemented. It will need to be applied to your local situation because each employer has its own grading structure. Your UNISON branch activists and UNISON staff will be working together to ensure that every employer fully implements the offer.

What happens next?

We want your pay rise to get to you as quickly as possible. Your local branch will let you know when to expect your pay rise. If you have any queries, please contact your branch directly:Branch Finder

]]>Stand up for social workhttps://www.unison.org.uk/our-campaigns/stand-social-work/
Wed, 05 Jul 2017 14:56:32 +0000https://www.unison.org.uk/?post_type=unison_campaign&p=186674Austerity has hit social services hard. Instead of putting the services children and families need in place, the government's response has been to recommend unnecessary tests. We have an important opportunity to stop them but we need to take action now.

Social work urgently needs investment. But instead of putting the services children and families need in place, the government’s response has been to recommend unnecessary tests for social workers in England.

Social workers are both highly-skilled and over-worked. They have voiced their overwhelming opposition to accreditation tests, which will take precious time away from children and families.

We have an important opportunity to stop the National Assessment and Accreditation System (NAAS). But we need to take action now.

Social worker’s Chloe, Ruth and Kerie came together to discuss their opposition to accreditation and issues affecting their profession. The video was recorded live in October 2017.

UNISON members working for the NHS in England have voted overwhelmingly to accept a three year pay deal and changes to the NHS pay structure negotiated by UNISON and the other 13 NHS unions.

All 14 NHS unions have been consulting their members on pay and have today (Friday) collectively endorsed this deal which has been overwhelmingly supported by NHS staff.

UNISON members voted yes by a large margin with approximately 84% voting to accept and 16% voting against. Over 83,500 members voted in a turnout of around 30%.

UNISON led the negotiations and the Treasury agreed to find £4.2bn of new money to ensure that these pay increases do not come at the cost of jobs or patient care.

Staff, including hospital porters, 999 call handlers, healthcare assistants, nurses, midwives and others will see pay increases of 6.5% at the top of bands with more for those below- through a combination of cost of living and faster incremental increases- over the three-year period.

The deal will also give an immediate £2,000 increase to lower-paid staff taking them above the living wage.

Every NHS worker in England will now be paid at least £8.93 an hour (18p above the real living wage of £8.75 an hour), or £17,460 a year if they work full-time.

The deal also delivers substantial increases to starting salaries, meaningful pay rises on promotion and faster progression through most pay bands.

Although the agreement only covers the NHS in England, as health is a devolved matter, it is expected that additional funding will now be made available through the Barnett formula for health budgets in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, allowing pay negotiations to take place for health workers there.

]]>One team for patient carehttps://www.unison.org.uk/our-campaigns/one-team-for-patient-care/
Tue, 18 Aug 2015 13:10:30 +0000https://www.unison.org.uk/?post_type=unison_campaign&p=83518UNISON is campaigning to ensure everyone who works in our NHS is valued, whatever role they fill.

]]>UNISON’s One Team campaign gives NHS support staff the recognition they deserve.

NHS support staff work tirelessly throughout the health service to clean wards, maintain vital equipment, order medical supplies, book appointments, manage computer systems and cook meals – all to ensure that patients get the care they need.

What is One Team about?

Who do people see when they think of NHS staff? Probably doctors, nurses and paramedics. But almost half the staff in the NHS (around 470,000 people) are in clinical support or infrastructure support roles – these include porters, medical secretaries, telephonists, cleaners, caretakers and laundry staff. These are the people, often unseen by patients, who work behind the scenes and carry out vital roles to keep our NHS running, making sure patients and their families get the best treatment possible.

What is UNISON doing for NHS support staff?

As the main union for support staff across the NHS, UNISON believes it’s high time that members of the public and politicians understood the role you play in delivering quality patient care. We think it’s unfair that you don’t get the recognition you deserve.

Support staff have been on the receiving end of cost-saving drives in the NHS, including job cuts, restructurings, zero hours contracts, downbanding and outsourcing.

UNISON campaigns to ensure that the NHS and its staff remain in the public sector. We campaign for you.

We are promoting the message that all staff, no matter what they do, play an important part in caring for patients.

We are campaigning to remove the false divide when politicians talk about ‘frontline’ and ‘back office’ NHS staff.

We are promoting the value of our support staff by campaigning against any attacks which come your way.

So what can you do as support staff working in the NHS?

If you’re not already a member, join UNISON so that you have a voice and can be part of our campaign.

Find out more about the campaign by visiting unison.org.uk/oneteam

Speak to your UNISON branch to get more details about One Team week

This year we will be celebrating the porters, cleaners, admin and clerical staff, catering staff and all support workers during One Team Week.

Join us to celebrate the whole healthcare team during One Team week from 5-9 November 2018.

]]>Save Our Local Serviceshttps://www.unison.org.uk/our-campaigns/save-our-local-services/
Wed, 11 Jun 2014 10:19:00 +0000http://www.unison.org.uk/campaigns/save-our-local-services/Council services are there for you when you need them, making your community a decent and safe place to live. But years of Westminster’s savage spending cuts have forced councils to scale back services.

]]>In June 2018, 21,000 people working in local councils and schools provided evidence which revealed the true impact of cuts. It showed local services are overstretched, neighbourhoods are in decline and residents are at risk. The SOS campaign has an important opportunity to stem the crisis – but we need your help now.

The government urgently need to prioritise more funding for local authorities at the November budget. What will make them listen?

Your personal experience. The impact cuts have had on your family, your community or your workplace can make your local MP realise how dire the situation is. And they can pressure the government in the lead-up to the budget.